Inside Defiance: Episode 24

Go behind-the-scenes and into the mythology of "All Things Must Pass."

This flashback takes place shortly after the first episode, when Nolan led the people of Defiance in a narrow victory over an invading Volge army. During that battle, Doc Yewll harnessed the power of a terrasphere, similar to the one that Irisa recently stole from an Earth Republic garrison. Ben Daris, Amanda's Indogene assistant, destroyed the stasis nets, allowing the Volge into town. Ben was helping Mayor Nicky locate the artifacts which ended up inside Irisa, which we now know to be the keys to the Kaziri.

When Ashi and Reimlu, the Irathient mutineers who disabled the Kaziri, took the tendril-artifacts into their bodies, the artifacts became imprinted with their DNA. This bond was passed down from generation to generation. That's why Irisa and Kai share visions of events that happened thousands of years ago. Irisa and Kai are direct descendants of Ashi and Reimlu.

Three thousand years ago, a secret council of Indogenes built the Kaziri to terraform the Earth before the rest of the fleet arrived. Ashi and Reimlu volunteered for this mission, unaware of what it entailed. When they awoke in Earth orbit, they realized the planet was inhabited and decided to mutiny rather than commit genocide.

The survivors of the Kaziri crash went into hiding. They realized that if they revealed their existence to mankind it would jeopardize the rest of the Votan fleet's chance for survival when they arrived in 2013. Most of them died off over the years, though at least one of them wrote down their experiences. These documents were transcribed over the years and the message became garbled. During the Pale Wars, a Castithan named Daigo discovered these writings. Taking them as prophecy, he founded a snake cult which began to experiment on young Irathient girls in search of a messiah who would bring about the end of the world.

The force of the impact buried the Kaziri deep underground, directly under the land that would eventually become St. Louis. When terraforming reshaped the planet in 2030, the Kaziri's shields protected a portion of the city, which is why the ruins of Old St. Louis still exist beneath Defiance.

If Irisa's outfit looks a little unusual, that's because it's the dress she wore to Christie and Alak's wedding. Then again, may it only looks crazy because we never see Irisa in a dress!

Ever since Irisa channeled the power of the terrasphere, her connection with the Kaziri has grown stronger. This has allowed the Kaziri to take full control of Irisa's mind. Irisa is acting like an antenna for the ship, relaying its orders to the ark fleet in space which has sat dormant for nearly twenty years.

This is a flashback to the night the Earth Republic first rolled into town. In the season one finale, Nolan was shot and killed by Black Jonah, an Echelon enforcer hired by Colonel Marsh. Nolan experienced a vision of Irisa leaping into a chasm beneath the town. He awoke seemingly unharmed, baffled by his mysterious resurrection. Thankfully, Nolan heeded Tommy's advice and immediately struck out to find Irisa. You can see a portion of Nolan's search for Irisa in the Defiance minisodes.

This is Manhattan, headquarters of the Earth Republic. Those alien modifications to the Statue of Liberty are powerful transmitters which allow the E-Rep a limited amount of communication with its soldiers across the new frontier.

The Kaziri is an arkbrain -- a hyper-advanced sentient computer. It was programmed to terraform Earth into a Votan paradise, with no regard for the planet's indigenous life. When the ship crashed to Earth, the Kaziri's A.I. found itself trapped in a metal prison deep underground. Over a period of three thousand years, it slowly began to go insane. The Kaziri lay dormant until 2013, when the Votans arrived. As the two Kelovan (the keys which unlock the Kaziri's power) approached, the Kaziri realized it had been given a second chance to complete its mission.

This is what the Votans originally intended for Earth -- to release a grid of terraforming devices to transform the planet. After waiting for three thousand years, the Kaziri is finally able to carry out its programming. But the Kaziri isn't the only A.I. on a mission. Right now in the Bay Area, an arkbrain called LOCI is directing its own followers to construct terraspires to convert San Francisco. It's not too late for you to help stop LOCI... check out the Defiance video game for more!

Unlike other Castithan women, Stahma actually enjoys bathing alone. She's even grown fond of using kirieshkiwa, or "pleasure crystals," which give the bath a little erotic kick. It was Kenya Rosewater who taught Stahma that she could enjoy herself without the aid of her husband. This was just one small step along Stahma's path to self-actualization -- her realization that she did not need to define herself by what the men in her life wanted.

Castithan hell is a gigantic crater divided into three parts. The lowest hell is a massive bowl. This is reserved for outcasts, criminals, and the like. Their souls are all mixed together, constantly threatening to swarm over the sides. The next level is a short rim around the bowl. This level is reserved for the middle liros who have disgraced their caste. They're forever doomed to hold back the tides of the souls below. The final level of hell is a cliff high above the others, and is reserved for the highest castes who disgraced their liro but didn't perform a cleansing ceremony. They are permitted to look out onto the living world, though powerless to interact with it.

"I found the scene between Amanda and Pottinger after Amanda decides not to kill Stahma especially difficult to film because I totally disagreed with Amanda's reaction! I had a hard time with Amanda questioning whether or not to kill Stahma. To me, it made sense why she would kill her. The question should have been 'I wanted to kill Stahma but I couldn't do it.' But for Amanda that wasn't her truth -- that was my judgment being placed on her." - Julie Benz, Amanda Rosewater

"This season really challenged my mobility in all the prosthetics. I had to become a lot more physical without damaging anything. Working with so many professionals I didn't find anything challenging. Everybody knew what they wanted and they were able to express themselves fully to get the results desired. Knowing your limits, and always trying to exceed them always helps you as an actor and in regular everyday life." - Kevin Shand, Raiga